Airport supervisor rerouted Russian flight before Polish plane crashed in 2010: report
PR dla Zagranicy
Victoria Bieniek
10.04.2017 12:20
The Russian general who supervised the failed landing of a Polish presidential plane in Smolensk seven years ago also ordered an earlier flight to reroute an hour before the crash, the niezalezna.pl website has reported.
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The website cites a telegram signed by the general, sniper-pilot Vladimir Benediktov, and claims it proves that he was liaising with the control tower of a military airport in Smolensk, western Russia, from Moscow on 10 April, 2010.
It said that Benediktov supervised the rerouting of an Ilyushin Il-76 commercial freighter plane after it made two attempts to land at Smolensk airport, both of which were called off, about an hour before the Polish presidential plane crashed, killing all 96 on board.
The Ilyushin was supposed to deliver vehicles and security staff ahead of the Polish president’s planned arrival at the airport.
Shortly before the Russian military plane was rerouted, a Polish government plane carrying journalists successfully landed at the airport.
Niezalezna.pl also said the control tower staff were “careful not to use the general’s name” but that the telephone operator was recorded saying who was on the line.
According to niezalezna.pl Benediktov served in Afghanistan and in two Russo-Chechen wars and commanded “bloody antiterrorist campaigns” and aviation special-ops.